Realbook

Describe your idea and concept of your work in relation to the festival outlines:

The idea of my co-optive advertising campaign 'Realbook' is to expose some of Facebooks weaknesses in order to provoke meaningful dialogue among users. Over time Facebook and social media in general has become a very controlled and fake media. People often heavily edit posts in order to appear a certain way to others. Moreover Facebook filters people's news feeds in order to only show them things they “like”. What we are seeing on Facebook isn't necessarily an accurate representation of reality. The term “Social media” suggests that Facebook brings people together and helps them connect, but in fact it is also creating distance, isolation and loneliness. Today there are over 12,000,000 Australian's on Facebook (Social Media Statistics Australia, 2013). We are faced with an over abundance of images, opinions, ideas, advertisements and messages every day. Despite the benefits to society there has also been some negative consequences as a result.

The problem is that a lot of the time people aren't really using this tool to create dialogue but instead just a lot of white noise. In fact so much white noise that it makes it hard to sift through all this information and find the important parts. The way Facebook has been designed paired with our increasingly short attention spans means people are communicating on a shallow level and aren't actually engaging with each other.

My campaign “Realbook” is designed to encourage people to question and discuss the way they are using social media through dialogue. Dialogue is the truest form of communication and is the way forward to resolve the issues that we find ourselves faced with as a global society. True dialogue demands attention in a world where attention is fiercely fought over. It operates around the premise that both/all parties have equal power and rights in context of dialogue. In order for true dialogue to occur each party must listen on a deep enough level that they could be changed by what they hear. Dialogue allows us to communicate even when we have differences and through this create unified experiences between people. A true dialogic exchange involves many different view points being discussed.

Realbook is a co-option of Facebook. It is made up of an interactive installation, billboard/train station posters and a smart phone application.

The interactive installation has been set up outside in order to create tensions between the physical and technological world. Users can swipe between the different screens. It is set up in a physical place so that people can visit together and provides the ideal environment for a dialogic exchange. The second application is the moving posters/billboards located at train stations and bus stops. The third application is the smartphone application which translates your content into a more honest representation.

What kind of communication approach do you use?

I began by trying to create an interactive exhibition in order to encourage dialogic exchange. By having an exhibition that people can visit together and interact with it encourages people to engage in meaningful discussions about the art. If this work was presented in a static form, less dialogue would occur as people may simply brush over the content but by displaying it in an interactive form people are required to visit the location (and if they aren't able to there is an app they can download) and engage with the material. The interactive gallery has been purposely situated outside among nature in order to create tension between the technological and natural world.

What are in your opinion concrete benefits to the society because of your communication?

The benefit to society of this piece lies in the dialogue and self reflection that will take place as a result of experiencing “Realbook”. The aim of this piece is to show how our society isn't functioning nearly as well as it could. We are facing huge environmental issues as well as wars in the Middle East. This could be due to a lack of dialogue being used in order to resolve these issues and instead an over abundance of white noise.

Society talks about these issues but because no one is really communicating honestly or genuinely listening to others dialogue is failing us. People think they are participating in dialogue but aren't necessarily. In order for dialogue to occur it requires a very honest exchange between people where they are able to communicate their thoughts and ideas without being judged and without aggression from the others.

What did you personally learn from creating your submitted work?

Through creating Realbook it has allowed me to think broadly about the array of potential avenues open to advertisers. Through the interactive installation I explored a number of other art installations which showed me just how many options there are and how artists/designers can be very creative. I have also been able to critically analyse the role of dialogue in the climate of social media that exists today. Dialogue is important on both a personal, one to one exchange, as well as on a global scale. Creating Realbook has allowed me to experience first hand the amount of work that goes into creating an advertising campaign from inception to conclusion.

Why is your work, GOOD communication WORK?

Good advertising takes into account community needs. Campaigns need to be designed in order to fit into the community and speak to the people who will be viewing this. 'Realbook' is targeted at Victorians as I believe this is a social issue that is very relevant. My campaign is good advertising design work because it takes into account traditions and professional codes in order to construct a quality campaign that people can relate to. 'Realbook' is a socially responsible piece of advertising work that aims to contribute to the world in a positive way rather than just trying to sell people a product. 'Realbook' isn't asking people to buy something. Instead it is asking them to think and engage with each other through dialogue. Due to the fact that 'Realbook' is aiming to achieve a social goal rather than a monetary or commercial goal it is easy for me, the practitioner, to find meaning in my work particularly being an active user of social media.

Where and how do you intent do implement your work?

In terms of the outdoor interactive exhibition I would implement this in the public sphere in a place such as the Royal Botanic Gardens. It needs to be in a natural environment due to the content. It also needs to be accessible to the public. The campaign would also be implemented on Billboards which would be placed at public transport stations and in the city of Melbourne. These billboards would be moving and would transition between the different screens of the campaign. The third application is implementing Realbook as an smart phone application. This would allow rural and regional Victorians and Australian's to be exposed to the advertising campaign.

Did your intervention had an effect on other Media. If yes, describe the effect? (Has other media reported on it- how? Were you able to change other media with your work- how?)

Not Applicable